Warren, Murray Call for Investigation Into Trump Administration Delaying Disaster Relief Funding for Disaster-Stricken Communities
Letter sent ahead of Banking Committee hearing on insurance and disaster relief
Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, wrote to the Inspector General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) calling for an investigation into the Trump Administration delaying HUD’s Community Block Development Grant Disaster Relief funding for disaster-stricken communities across the country.
“At his confirmation hearing, Secretary Turner stated that getting the CDBG-DR funds out to communities was a ‘top priority’ for him. However, his actions have not matched that stated commitment. The last three months have been marked by chaos, confusion, and poor communication with the people and communities that rely on this funding the most,”wrote the Senators.
The Senators pressed for answers on delays, asking: “What analysis, if any, did HUD conduct on the potential for delays in the availability of CDBG-DR funding as a result of changing eligibility requirements? If no analysis was conducted, why not?”
Additionally, the Senators outlined how the Trump Administration’s changes to the CDBG-DR program have “principally undercut anti-discrimination requirements and increased the chances of waste, fraud, and abuse by not requiring grantees to adequately account for future disaster risk.”
Today’s letter follows news that the Administration is slashing funding for community disaster preparation and reporting that the Trump Administration prioritized FEMA funding to states based on who they voted for.
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